2023-01-14-亚开行-激励变革_治理改革如何改变孟加拉国的城市景观（英）_152页_15mb

Summary of "Incentivizing Change: How Governance Reforms Are Changing the Urban Landscape of Bangladesh"

Executive Summary

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) partnered with the Government of Bangladesh from 2002 to 2022 on the Urban Governance and Infrastructure Improvement (Sector) Project (UGIIP). This project aimed to transform urban governance and infrastructure by incentivizing local municipalities (pourashavas) to adopt reforms linked directly to infrastructure funding. Through a performance-based approach, UGIIP achieved significant improvements in governance, tax collection, and citizen participation, fostering sustainable urban development.

Context and Challenges

Bangladesh’s urban areas face challenges such as

• Poor infrastructure (roads, water supply, drainage, waste management).
• Weak governance due to heavy reliance on central government transfers and low citizen participation.
• Limited local revenues and inefficiency in tax collection (e.g., low holding tax collection).
• Inadequate fiscal autonomy and capacity gaps in local administration.

These issues were compounded by rapid urbanization and disparities between secondary towns (pourashavas) and megacities.

The UGIIP Strategy

UGIIP employed three core principles:

1. Performance-based financing: Pourashavas qualified for infrastructure funds by meeting governance milestones.
2. Capacity building: Provided training and technical support for local governments.
3. Community participation: Established town-level coordinating committees (TLCCs) and ward-level committees (WLCCs) to involve residents in decision-making.

The strategy evolved across three phases (UGIIP-1, UGIIP-2, UGIIP-3), incorporating loops of learning to enhance governance criteria and funding allocations.

Key Governance Reforms

1. Financial Accountability

• Increased holding tax collection efficiency from an average of 30-40% to over 89% (UGIIP-3).
• Diversified revenue streams (e.g., water tariffs, fees, nontax revenues).

2. Resident Participation

• Formed TLCCs and WLCCs with ≥34% female representation and at least 15% from low-income groups.
• Established grievance redress cells and resident charters to ensure transparency.

3. Equity and Inclusiveness

• Created specialized committees for women, children, poverty reduction, and slum improvements.
• Allocated funds specifically for gender action plans (GAPs) and microcredit programs for women.

Infrastructure Improvements

UGIIP funded projects across six categories:

1. Roads, drains, and solid waste management
2. Water supply and sanitation
3. Municipal facilities (e.g., markets, parks, bus terminals).
   Key achievements:

• 1,727 km of roads rehabilitated
• 632 km of drains constructed
• 390 km of water pipes installed
• 262 slums upgraded
• Climate-resilient designs incorporated into infrastructure projects.

Successes, Challenges, and Lessons

Successes:

• Enhanced local revenues and accountability
• Increased women’s participation in governance and economic activities
• Community-driven development through standing committees
• Improved infrastructure sustainability with climate adaptation

Challenges:

• Centralized human resource policies limiting local hiring
• Shortage of qualified consultants and technical experts
• Balancing infrastructure needs with limited budgets
• Gaps in operation and maintenance (O&M) of new assets

Key Lessons:

1. Performance-based incentives align reforms with tangible benefits.
2. Strong local partnerships (e.g., with the Local Government Engineering Department) are critical.
3. Capacity building must extend to diverse stakeholders, including residents.

Unfinished Business

• Scale up UGIIP to more pourashavas (especially Class B and C municipalities).
• Strengthen national urban policies and decentralization reforms.
• Address climate vulnerabilities in urban infrastructure.
• Ensure sustained O&M for infrastructure projects.

Conclusion

UGIIP demonstrated that governance-driven reforms paired with performance-based infrastructure funding can transform urban areas in challenging contexts. Lessons from UGIIP can guide future urban development initiatives in Bangladesh and beyond.